Strawberry Shortcake

We've been in the thick of strawberry season here in New England for a few weeks, and while I think it's finally trailing off, it's never too late to turn some of those berries into keto-friendly strawberry shortcake!

The shortcake itself is 2.5:1, and then the berries:cream ratio is 2.5:1. You can obviously play around with the cream a bit to achieve higher ratios. I adapted the shortbread from this Smitten Kitchen recipe and used the conventional recipe for the rest of us - we all had a great dessert night!

This recipe makes 12 shortcakes of about 120 calories each- which is probably way more than you need for a night! With so much fat they're really calorically dense so when you make them, each one doesn't need to be very big. The shortcakes bake ahead and freeze well, and you can make up the strawberries and cream on the spot when you thaw one.

Ingredients for 2.5:1 shortcake:

5g baking powder

8g Lakanto monkfruit sweetener

10g hard boiled egg yolk (this is about 1/2 a standard large hard boiled egg yolk)

9g European butter

13g ghee

55g macadamia nut flour (you could substitute almond flour here without much change to the ratio)

43g 40% heavy whipping cream

pinch of lemon zest (if desired)

pinch of salt

Directions for shortcake:

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the macadamia nut flour, Lakanto sweetener, baking powder, egg yolk, and salt. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and zest, if using, and pulse until the flour resembles coarse meal. Add the cream and pulse until the dough comes together.

Turn the dough out onto a silicon mat and gather into a shaggy mass. Knead a couple times to make it into a cohesive mass and then divide into two halves. Pat each half into a rough circle about 1-inch thick.

Using a sharp knife, cut the circle into 6 wedges and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Alternately, you can use a cookie cutter to make shapes of your choice. Chill for 20 minutes (and up to 2 hours).

Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake until risen and golden brown, 15-17 minutes. Turn the pan around halfway through to ensure even cooking. Allow to cool on a rack before eating or freezing.

Ingredients for 2.5:1 strawberries and cream:

20g fresh strawberries, sliced or chopped

12g 40% heavy whipping cream

Drop of vanilla flavored sweetener (I used this Lakanto monkfruit extract sweetener), if desired

Directions for assembly:

Mix the sweetener and heavy cream and whip. Top a fresh or defrosted shortcake with strawberries and the whipped cream and enjoy!